Universal Studios

I didn't take my camera to Universal so today's blip was taken on Tom's iPhone. The finger on the button belonged to one of the Simpsons' charming chaperones (I cropped it slightly and tried to improve the contrast and colour balance - that'll have to do, I'm afraid.) Let's just say we launched ourselves at the Universal Studios 'experience' with no small amount of gusto. We got the Metro over nice and early with the usual 'Team Prime' attempt at military precision, got there when they opened, invested in 'Front of Line' upgrades and pretty much gave ourselves up to the whole theme park vibe (Universal Studios basically being what Alton Towers would be like if it was good.) We did the Studio Tour first, with it's detours into King Kong's Skull Island, past the Bates Motel and through the Amity of Jaws, and then we went on the Simpsons' Ride,which, given that by now I felt as if I'd actually been in an episode of the show, would probably have been enough for me. But no, we did Jurassic Park and the Mummy and Shrek and Transformers and Minions - and we ate a hotdog in the beer garden of the Duff Brewery, saw some performing animals and live special effects and got some idea as to why Waterworld almost sank the studio. Oh, and we had our picture taken with the Simpsons. Frankly, we were so knackered by the end of it we barely had the energy to stop by the Dodgers Shop to get t-shirts for the game on Monday, crawl onto the Metro home and drag ourselves to the California Pizza Kitchen in the Highlands Centre for large reviving bowls of pasta. We did go back to our hotel and borrow a copy of 'Fast Times At Ridgemount High' though, just to round things off...